Extinguishing the Lights
by PlatoDan
Summary: AU Dark OneShot. Darth Vader goes to Tatooine to investigate a disturbance in the Force. This story takes place seven years after RotS. Contains Character Deaths


Extinguishing the Lights

Tatooine. The one place in the galaxy that I would avoid if I could but the Force wills as the Force wills, and it has never led me astray. From time to time I do question its judgment and wonder whether or not it is the Force's will or simply my Master's, carefully planted and disguised as to appear to me to be the Force.

I must gather my thoughts. This kind of pointless drabble will get me nowhere, especially when I am attempting to meditate, to gain clarity on my current mission, to discover the disturbance that both my Master and I have felt emanating from that despicable planet.

More than likely it is just a child who through a freak of genetics has been blessed, or rather cursed, with a high midichlorian count. At the height of the Republic, when there were countless Jedi, a single child's presence would not be felt light years away. Since the number of force users has decreased so dramatically since the change of governmental institution seven years ago the Force beckons to those untouched lights.

So with that tingling summons I set off to kill the source of the aberration disturbing the calm darkness that the Force has become; to silence it by any and all means; and to keep my carefully crafted balance in check.

A fleet officer, a Commander, tells me we are about to drop out of hyperspace. I nod and make my way to the main bridge. I smile under my mask as I pass conscripts and enlisted men, and feel the fear roll off of them. I call a lift, it answers, and I step on through the exodus of troops, unwilling to share the lift with me. The darkness has its rewards.

The bridge as usual is filled with the contained chaos that only starships have and as I walk the sea of officers splits. I order the captain to raise the surface and our permanent detachment there.

"L...L...Lord Vader, it is an h…h…h…honor to sp…spe…speak with you. I am C…C…Commander Kl—"

"Cease with the pleasantries Commander, you know why I am here. Have you had any success in locating it?" I wonder how a blundering fool such as this could make his way up in the ranks to commander. I find his current assignment a show of his importance in the greater scheme of things; the stuttering commander takes a moment to compose himself and then continues.

"My Lord, we are checking the blood tests for all of the children on the planet, but as you know this is no easy task on the best of worlds, let alone on a world like _this_. The microorganism you specified is not shown on many of the records, and so we need to cross reference with the records on Imperial Center. We have encountered several—"

"I do not want excuses, I want answers, and you will have them by the time I arrive at your location, or I will have you replaced with someone more competent."

"O…O…Of course, my Lord it will be as you command."

He kept talking, but I was already gone, ordering the deck officer to have my shuttle prepared. I knew that the Captain always had my shuttle ready for launch when we were out of hyperspace, something he learned from his predecessor, who discovered how minute my patience truly is.

The pristine floor of the docking bay reflects my visage and that of the others waiting for me by the three shuttles there. I pick one at random, knowing that the new policy that all higher ups taking official transport need decoys, to deter the ever growing Rebel Alliance from assassinating those officials. Though if a rebel has the capability to destroy a single shuttle, there is a good chance that they could destroy three. I do not intend to tell that to the self-serving Moffs and Admirals, because the fuel consumption of the Empire would surely skyrocket.

The flight is uneventful. No rebels attempting to kill me on this planet, just Jedi, and there's something else, something intangible that I have not felt in a long time. More then likely it is the planet, since Anakin Skywalker spent much of his childhood here it is riddled with connections to his past, connections which have no bearing on the here and now.

I focus on my mission as I leave the shuttle and approach the stuttering Commander and say, "Well?"

I hear desperation in his voice, "My Lord, please, you must understand that this is a very long process, and that we have not had much tim—"

He begins to gag, like countless others as he struggles for breath. I deal with most of my ineffectual subordinates this way. At first I would constrict other places in order to cull the weak from the starfleet's officer corps: blocking the pulmonary vein or stopping the blood to the brain. I found that none of these inspired fear in the hearts of my men as much as the invisible hand that could choke them at any time.

He falls to the ground dead, and I address the Lieutenant Commander who was standing slightly behind his now deceased superior. "I expect you, _Commander,_ to have better results."

I turn and walk towards what passes for the Command Center in Mos Eisley. The old hotel had been confiscated for being on the outskirts of the town yet still close to the city center, and also for its fortification, made up of a wall that encircled the compound. As I enter the Command Center I see a map of the area around the three main settlements, the most heavily populated area on the planet. An area which Anakin Skywalker knew well, Mos Espa, Mos Eisley, Anchorhead, and the Bestine Township are all marked.

My focus is drawn to the space well to the south of Anchorhead; I can not figure out why until I realize that Anakin Skywalker's step-brother lived there, and Skywalker had even visited once. Perhaps there was another reason. I could be feeling a stirring in the Force, but I push that thought aside as I do to all things related to Anakin Skywalker. They are a frivolous waste of my time. Though I can not help but wonder if this inkling in the force is something greater than a pang of remembrance.

I am interrupted from my thoughts by the young, newly promoted Commander, "Excuse me my Lord, but here are the initial household results listings of any anomalies in their children's records."

"Anomalies?"

"Yes my Lord, a corrupted or absence of a blood sample, or a—"

"An absence? Have you cross-checked with the records on Imperial Center?"

"Of course my Lord, that is the first thing I did, but for several children no matches were found. You see out here on the Rim, the poor farmers, don't always follow proper procedure for a new birth, and to be honest as long as they pay their taxes, no one really cares."

I was becoming annoyed. "I want a list of all of the addresses of all of those children who do not have blood samples on record, and I want it now. I intend to do this job quickly and to get off of this Force-forsaken planet."

I look down to the list and recognize one particular name, the Lars homestead. Perhaps I misjudged the feeling the Force was giving me. "Commander, prepare my troops, we will begin here." I point to the Lars' name on the list.

"Of course, my Lord," he intones.

It takes about an hour to arrive there in the assault speeders and as we near the target I feel the presence that has eluded me for so long, that of Anakin Skywalker's old Master. Obi-Wan Kenobi is here, and I will kill him. There is no movement; there is only a silhouette in brown raggedy robes. "Obi-Wan," I say to myself more than the troops, "I'll take care of this."

I stand and ignite my lightsaber, "You are a fool to show yourself old man, when I left you, I was but the learner; now I am the Master." I drone out with the words I'd practiced for this very occasion.

"Only a master of evil, Darth." He replies as he ignites his blue blade.

We stand there facing each other, until I pounce forward and attempt to strike him down, he blocks easily, and the fight is on. No matter where I attack, his blade is always there ready for me, and I begin to get angry. As my master taught me, I channel that anger into my attack and slowly begin to push him back.

The fight rages on, and I see that I will soon be victorious over him; he realizes it as well. "You can't win, Darth. If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine…"

My anger continues to build and I spit, "Jedi lies, when I strike you down you will die like rest of your kind, by my hand."

Seconds pass, and I see an opening. I slash across the front of his robes, deep enough to be a mortal wound, but something happens, Obi-Wan disappears. All that remain are his clothes, which I kick to make sure that he is really gone. I felt him die, but where is his body? Where is the proof? My anger continues to build as I order the troops to collect the beings that live here so that they can be brought before me.

They go and return a moment later with three humans, a man, a woman, and a child. I reach out into the Force, and I see that it sings around this boy. I turn to address the man, "You thought you could hide this Jedi? You underestimate the power of the dark side."

I slice him down with my still active lightsaber and the woman screams. To silence her I slash and the noise stops. I turn to the boy, who has no fear in his eyes, his head is tilted and he seems curious. He doesn't know what is about to happen. Pity, I like to see the realization in the eyes of my victims as I kill them. I take up my blade and aim it at him, preparing to slash. His eyes have still not left mine, or at least where my eyes would be if it were not for this mask. For some reason I hesitate, but I quickly overcome that feeling, as I have overcome so much in my life, and I slice into him.

I see his eyes flash and only then do I realize where I had seen those eyes before, they were Anakin Skywalker's eyes… my eyes. Only then do I understand what I have done. How far I have gone.

On Alderaan, a Princess screams.

On Dagobah, a Master weeps.

On Coruscant, Evil smiles.

But in the Force, all find peace.


End file.
